A SEX shop has been forced to install a secluded side entrance after punters were subjected to loud cheers from the pub opposite each time the door opened with a loud 'ding'.

The adult shop in Apsley, Hertfordshire, England made the adjustment because of the ribald jeers customers received from the The Bull pub opposite.

In the summer, those looking to discretely enter the shop were given a shock as pub customers - consisting mainly of builders - reacted with the friendly banter and a loud 'wa-hey!'.

Landlady Nicola Green, 47, said: "As soon as you open that door it goes 'ding!'

"When that bell goes people in here cheer, so the shop moved the entrance round the side.

"Most of our customers are builders and you know what they are like.

"I think the shop just wanted something a bit more discreet. Some people are quite open about the fact they go the shop, but others might want to stay a bit more secretive.

"So they did the sensible thing in the end. The lads in here are only having a bit of fun but at least this way it saves their blushes."

The Private Shop has been open for around 20 years but bosses admitted 'banter' from the pub meant they had to put in the side door 'a couple of years ago'.

Customers can still use the front door but three quarters choose the door in Storey Street, which has no bell and a wooden screen around it.

David Brunt, area supervisor for Darker Enterprises Ltd, which owns the shop, said: "We use the side door because it's better than the front door.

"In the summer when there are people outside, they do tend to make comments about people. It's ribaldry, it's light-hearted banter.

"We try to keep a low profile. People know we've been here 20 years.

"Seventy five per cent come in the side door. It's to keep things quiet for people."

One 46-year-old customer of the shop, who did not wish to be named said: "It was all a bit of fun, but it was terribly embarrassing. People stopped coming in the end. Business must have dropped during the summer.

"But not they've changed it now so they've sorted the problem at least."

The only other sex establishment in the borough is the Waggon and Horses strip club in Flamstead, which caused controversy last year when it put up a new sign featuring the silhouette of a naked woman.

A year ago council chiefs were forced to abandon a list of 'appropriate' locations for sex clubs, drawn up as part of changes to licensing policy, following a furious backlash.